National Honey Bee Day is just as it sounds, a day in honor of the buzzing bees that keep our ecosystem thriving.

In recent years, the population of honey bees around the world has decreased due to mites, pesticides and fewer wildflowers. Because bees are a vital part of our ecosystem, conservation is important to keep them alive.

The Lehigh Valley Beekeepers Association will show what makes these creatures so special at a National Honey Bee Day event Saturday at the Wildlands Conservancy at 3701 Orchid Road in Lower Macungie Township.

The event will include educational opportunities for adults and children. Children can act out the responsibilities of bees within a honey bee colony. Each child will also receive a coloring book and honey stick. Adults and children can learn about the process of extracting honey and the roles in a bee colony, as well as tour an apiary. Vendors at the event will sell products utilizing honey, including honey itself, soaps, bees wax and other items.

Featured at the event is Pennsylvania Honey Queen Kaylee Kilgore, a beekeeper who is a student at Lehigh University where she assisted in establishing an apiary with assistance from area beekeepers.

National Honey Bee Day runs 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event is free. More info: http://www.wildlandspa.org.